Premiership clubs have kept their fans and in some cases increased attendances since the start of the season, providing further evidence of football’s ability to withstand recession, according to Deloitte. The first six weeks of the season have seen clubs using 91 per cent of their stadium capacity, in line with previous seasons. Blackburn Rovers and Manchester City have increased attendances by 10 per cent.
Premiership clubs have kept their fans and in some cases increased attendances since the start of the season, providing further evidence of football’s ability to withstand recession, according to Deloitte. The first six weeks of the season have seen clubs using 91 per cent of their stadium capacity, in line with previous seasons. Blackburn Rovers and Manchester City have increased attendances by 10 per cent. Deloitte’s Sport Business Group said attendance figures vindicated the decision over the summer by more than three-quarters of Premiership clubs to freeze or reduce season ticket prices. However, the gulf between the top clubs and smaller ones in the Premiership remains a wide one. Dan Jones of Deloitte commented, ‘We are seeing a fight to quality whereby the largest clubs perform well but for smaller clubs the challenges are greater.’ With the takeover of Birmingham City by Hong Kong businessman Carston Yeung completed, half of the Premiership clubs are now foreign owned: Aston Villa, Birmingham City, Chelsea, Fulham, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Portsmouth, Sunderland and West Ham United.
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